The Caretaker's Daughter
by CLMScagliotti
Summary: Dana Donovan-Jinks was different. With Caretaker Claudia Donovan-Jinks as her mother and Special Agent In Charge Steven Jinks as her father, you should think that there's nothing she's never seen. But in a world of endless wonder, you never know what'll wait for you tomorrow.
1. Chapter 1: A Special Day

**The Caretaker's Daughter **

**A/N: KNOCK, KNOCK. Alright, so this is the start of my second fanfiction. I know I didn't finish the first one yet, but I'm working on it. And this one just wouldn't leave me alone. It's kind of an introduction to my Tumblr RP OC, Dana Olivia Donovan-Jinks. My former Tumblr RP blog for her was knockknockwarehouse13, now it's artifexadmiratio. **

**It took me ages to pick a face for her. In the end, in my mind Dana is portrayed by the beautiful Alexandra Daddario. **

**Sadly I don't own Warehouse 13 or its characters. Neither do I own Alex Daddario, of course. But the character Dana and the one or other character in future chapters are out of my own imagination. I hope you enjoy my story.**

**KeepTheFaith, CLM. **

23.07.2026

It was a rather stormy day in the Badlands of South Dakota. Dark clouds were hanging above the desert, the few sandy streets and the mountains. What most people didn't know, was that one of the giant rocks was hiding something. A building, greater than the outer view would ever allow curious passengers to imagine. The closest most them got to this place was a lonely street that was guiding towards a small town, or rather settlement, a few miles from here. Little do the inhabitants of Univille know, about what was hidden so close, and yet so far away from their eyes.

A black SUV stopped in front of the Warehouse. An eight year old girl jumped out of the passenger's seat and ran towards the locked door. Stopping in front of it, she turned around to face the driver.

"Come on, Uncle Pete! Unlock the door to the umbilicus or I'll have to let myself in!"

All patience lost, she nervously jumped up and down while she was waiting for the man to get out of the car. Special Agent Peter Lattimer pushed the button on the remote, built and improved by the girl's tech savvy mother, to open the door. He shook his head in amusemt and followed the girl with his brown eyes. She reminded him so much of her mother. She was exactly how he imagined a young Claudia Donovan to be. Still with her dark brown hair, but already with her sarcastic smartass attitude. Except for the piercing blue eyes and the fact that every high tech lie detector was a joke against her.

The agent laughed as he followed the impatient girl through the umbilicus. If someone would have told him when those two met years ago that the independent Miss Claudia Donovan would fall madly in love with her back then as gay identified best friend and partner Steven Jinks, he would have made sure there was a reserved place for that freak in the closest mental institution.

He still remembered the day when he noticed that Claudia and Steve could actually be so much more than friends like it was just yesterday.

_16.03.2015, Lansing, Michigan, St Lawrence Hospital _

_Jinks and Claudia had just finished a difficult artifact snag. They already had what they were sent to get, but the man they had taken it from was still affected by the artifact. He was obsessed with it and wanted it back, no matter at what cost. Long story short: The mad man followed the second A-Team to the airport and without any warning he started the gunfire. They handled the situation pretty well, but Steve was shot in the shoulder. Steve said he would just see a doctor and then they could catch a later flight. He even told Claudia that she could leave and that he would come after her as soon as he could. _

_But of course that was not what his partner had in mind. She immediately brought him to the hospital and before Steve could say anything, she assured the doctor that they would stay there as long as he needed to. Shortly before her friend got into surgery to get the bullet out, she called Artie and told him what happened and that they would probably stay a couple of days. Since there was no case to send Pete and Myka to, their boss agreed that they could go to Michigan, too, to visit their colleague at the hospital. _

_When they arrived a nurse told them Steve was already out of surgery and that everything went well. She brought them to his room, but told them to stay quiet because the patient and his girlfriend were asleep at the moment. When the woman called Claudia Steve's girlfriend they just exchanged a slightly confused glance, but as soon as they went into Steve's room they saw why she had assumed they were a couple. _

_The injured agent lay on his bed, wearing a hospital gown. His bright blue eyes were indeed shut. Nut what really caught the agents' attention was the redheaded woman, who was snuggled up beside him. Claudia held onto her BFFEWYLION for dear life. He had his right arm slung around her small shoulders and she had buried her face in his chest. _

_Pete turned to his left where he heard Myka giggling uncharacteristically. His partner looked him gleefully in the eyes and said, "It's weird. They're not even actually romantically involved, but I've never seen such a cute couple."_

_At first Pete thought the woman had just seen one too many chick flicks, until he remembered who he was talking to. If the fencing, independent, book loving and super smart Myka Ophelia Bering said something like this, then it was worth been given a second thought. So he thought about it. He thought about the nicknames his friends had for each other, the way they worked together, the way they looked at each other, the way how just Claudia and Steve knew even their deepest and darkest secrets. _

_When the case of Claire Donovan came up, it had taken Pete and Myka quite some time to follow what was happening. They hadn't even known that the redhead had an older sister. But Steve had known. Claudia had told him about her family, about the time before her life got so messed up. Only him. When Claudia had a nightmare, because of what she found out about her past or because she was reminded of the darker times of her young life, she went to Steve. Because she trusted him. With everything. And it was Claudia who reconnected Steve to his mother. He hadn't said a word to Emma in years, and Claudia could change that on a single day. Of course he still had a hard time to swallow everything that happened, but she helped him to get through this rough time. _

_They were at each other's side, day or night. In the good and in the bad times. These two had been through so much together. Every normal couple wouldn't have gotten through all of this. A normal relationship would have been broken long ago. But they didn't have a normal relationship. They weren't a normal couple. They weren't just simply friends or partners. These two agents had a relationship like he had never seen one before. Claudia Donovan and Steve Jinks had a totally new kind of love for each other. They were friends, they were family, and they were each other's most important constant in their lifes. And maybe, even if they would deny it forever, that's exactly the reason why they were a perfect couple. All on their own they were just two lonely misfit toys, seemingly broken to everyone else, who had met through a coincidence in the middle of chaos and madness. But together they found their place. Maybe it was not just a coincidence after all. _


	2. Chapter 2: A New Year (Part 1)

**A/N: KNOCK, KNOCK. I originally planned to bring the content of Chapter 2, Chapter 3 and Chapter 4 in one chapter. But my inspiration said otherwise. So basically the second, the third and the fourth belong together. **

**My current face claim for Kaitlyn is actually Tyler Hynes' girlfriend. Her name won't come to my mind right now, but her Instagram account is called imkeekees. **

**I don't own anything but my imagination, Kate and Dana at this point. **

**Most of the things I wrote about Claire are out of my head. I think she didn't get enough time on the show. And never with her brother, so I decided to fix that. Also, Chryssie Whitehead is actually not only an amazing actress, but also a dance teacher. So that wasn't completely made up. **

**KTF CLM **

23.07.2026

Dana ran through the umbilicus faster than Pete's eyes could follow the girl. In the office they were greeted by Agent Myka Bering. The woman nervously played with her dark brown hair. She had straightened it just this morning, but because she was twirling the streaks around her fingers the curls were already visible again. Usually she would be annoyed by that fact, but today she had other worries. When she heard how the door to the umbilicus swung open, she looked up and forced herself to smile. Myka actually had to chuckle when she saw how excited the little brunette was. She jumped around the office with a wide grin on her face. Myka turned to face her partner. "Looks like she's even more excited than she sounded over the Farnsworth. I didn't think that was even possible."

Pete nodded sheepishly. "Her cheery mood last Christmas was nothing against this. I could barely hold her in the car. I let her sit in the front just to make sure she wouldn't open the door and jump out. I've got no doubts that even if she would have broken a few bones, she would have been faster if she was running on her own feet than I was with the car. Our little Tesla Girl ran the last steps like the Flash."

Now Myka had a matching grin to Pete's on her face. She rolled her eyes at the comic reference, but most of her annoyance was exaggerated out of pure habit. Her eyes wandered to Dana. The girl reminded her so much of the pictures she had seen from Claudia at her age. The straight, dark brown hair that was falling over her shoulders. The mischievous spark in her eyes, the wide smile. She was really pretty. Just like her mother.

"Where are Mom and Dad?", she heard the eight year old asking, now a little bit calmer than when she first entered the building.

Myka sent the girl a caring smile. "They're in the surgery room, with Doctor Calder and Doctor Carter."

"Still? When will they be here? Can I go in?" she asked, a hopeful look in her big blue eyes. She had the same pleading puppy look Claudia used to use against Artie,when she wanted his approval for a new project. Not that she wouldn't do it without his permission, but at least she always asked. Well, almost always.

"Yes, they are still in there. But I'm pretty sure you should wait with us, Dana. They'll be here soon. All of them." Myka smiled knowingly, even though she did sympathize with the kid. The girl nodded slowly, only slightly disappointed. Her icy eyes landed on a picture on her father's desk. When Myka turned to see what she was looking at, memories swept over the agent. She would never forget that day. And even though she couldn't quite follow the happenings back then, she'd also never forget how they got there.

_31.12.2015, Warehouse 13, South Dakota, K39ZZZ on the North American grid_

_It was New Year's Eve. Usually the team would split up over the holidays to visit their families, or at least try to, but this year Steve suggested that they could all come back to the Warehouse after Christmas for once. Since his father was busy and Vanessa would be there with them, Artie agreed pretty quickly. Maybe a bit too quickly, because Claudia sent him a questioning glance. But luckily, all of her doubts about Artie's decision where gone as soon as she found out that not only her brother Joshua and his girlfriend Kaitlyn, but also her sister Claire would come to Univille to celebrate with them. _

_Claire Donovan was quite a smart woman, but, unlike her brother, she decided against a career as a scientist. Instead she wanted to do what she did best: work with music. She surprised them all when she told them she got a job as a dance teacher and choreographer in New York City. Claire always loved to dance, she just never thought that it would be her job one day. And they were even more surprised that she'd rather spend New Year's Eve in South Dakota than in NYC. But Artie told her that she wouldn't want to miss this event. He also said that she shouldn't tell her younger sister that he said that. So, confused and curious, she chose to follow the invitation. _

_Now she was sitting in the dining room with Artie, Vanessa, Myka, Pete, Joshua and his fiancé Kaitlyn. Kate was a beautiful young woman with dark brown hair and curious, bright eyes. She was from Great Britain and was now working at CERN with Josh. That's how they met, when he was asked to introduce her to the team of scientists in his lab. He barely told his sisters about his new girl, until he told them they got engaged four months ago. They would get married in February, and even though they had to promise Claudia not to worry about the preparations of their wedding right now, they both seemed a bit nervous. _

_And that, of course, wasn't left unnoticed by Claire. She looked around the table. Myka, just like her, looked like she suspected something. Earlier that day she had even asked Pete if he got a vibe. Pete, in a vacation rush with a colorful hat on top of his head, had simply answered with "Not a bad one." which made Myka and Claire even more curious. Did that mean he had a good vibe? Did he know what was going on? But the women's attention was quickly back on the other people around the table. _

_Joshua kept looking to the floor, always holding Kaitlyn's hand. He stroke the top of her engagement ring, and from time to time he would look her in the eyes. But not like he usually looked at her. It was almost as if he was asking for her permission for something. Kate just casually shook her head, while she kept chatting with the others. She didn't even seem to notice that she was the only one talking._

_But Claire's main focus was on Artie. She couldn't help thinking about what he told her over the phone. Or more importantly, what he didn't tell her. He was nervous. Vanessa looked at him as if she wanted to warn him. She didn't say it out loud, but when her eyes were locked with Artie's, she sent him a you-promised-something-so-keep-your-mouth-shut look. And he didn't say a word, but he was still somewhere between excited like a child on the morning after Christmas Eve and worried like a father that was afraid he might lose one of his children. One way or another. _

_That's when it hit Claire. Her younger sister and Steve had left for the Warehouse over an hour ago. He said he had forgotten his Farnsworth there and he didn't want to go alone. So Claudia, although a little confused about his uncharacteristic behavior, agreed to go with him. _

_Claire might not be the one in the room that got the vibes, but she had the intuition of an older sister, and she had a good feeling today. _


	3. Chapter 3: A New Year (Part 2)

**A/N: KNOCK, KNOCK. I originally planned to bring the content of Chapter 2, Chapter 3 and Chapter 4 in one chapter. But my inspiration said otherwise. It decided to turn it into a 3-Parter. So basically the second a****nd the third belong together. **

**This chapter was a bit harder to write and it is a bit longer than the last ones. I'm sorry if Claude and Steve are a little OOC. This idea just wouldn't leave my head, and I figured this was** **a way to write it.** **Hopefully a good one. **

**Thank you for every follow, favorite and review. It means a lot to me and it always makes my day. **

**KTF CLM **

23.07.2026

Steve Jinks had been in the surgery room for hours now, so he went in front of the door for a moment. The room was down in the Warehouse, close to the Feng Shui spiral. He would need about three minutes to get there, so he decided to take the risk. If something happened, they could call him on the Farnsworth. In fact, he always carried the device with him.

Except for that one New Year's Eve. He smiled as he made his way through the rows of the Warehouse. Steve had been planning this one night for a long time. Until the last second he wasn't sure if he found the right place and the right moment. But there was one thing that he was totally sure of all along: He got the right woman.

_31.12.2015 _

_Steve had never been so scared in his entire life. Every day they had to deal with crazy maniacs and magical artifacts. Hell, he was already dead once. But this was different. This one night would hopefully change his life forever. Or rather assure that it wouldn't change anymore, because he couldn't imagine it any better. _

_He and Claudia had just started dating in April 2015. That was only a few months ago, but they had known each other for years already. And he could deny it as much as he wanted, but he had known she was so much more than a friend to him long before they got romantically involved. There was no one he could connect to like he could with her. They were so different, but they always seemed to understand each other. Of course he wasn't and would never be a computer genius. And she wasn't and would never be a master of mediation. But they always balanced each other out. _

_If she had an adrenaline shock because she was angry or excited, he was always able to calm the redhead down. If he was overthinking something or if he was worried, she was always able to cheer him up and to help him to make the right decision. _

_Just like she did it with him and Emma. Afterwards, Steve couldn't really understand how he could have been mad at his mother for so long. She missed Livi just like he did. They had both lost her. But in his rage he had forgotten that. He didn't understand his mother's decision back then. He had just lost one of the most important people in his life, and she defended the man who took her from him. _

_But after Claudia brought him and Emma to talk to each other, he understood. He was still angry, he was still sad. And so was she. But she didn't want another family to live through this too, no matter who this family was or what a single one of them did. _

_Both, Steve and Claudia, had already lost so much. He had lost his sister and his father, and he had lost years with his mother. She had lost her parents, and even though she got both of them back eventually, she had lost Joshua and Claire. Not to mention that she lost him, too._

_But they had won so much since they were here. They both got a place to call home. They won people that were there when they needed them. They got an insight into a world, from which only so few people knew about. And now, they had each other. And if the choice was theirs, they always would. _

_If his loss taught Steve one thing, then that he should hold onto the things he still had instead of grieving after what he lost. He was a Buddhist. He was supposed to want what he had, not what he didn't have. He didn't have Olivia in person anymore, but he would always carry his sister in his heart. And he had Claudia, alive and in person. So, he could honestly say he was happy with what he had._

_The drive to the Warehouse went by in silence. He felt that she studied him from the passenger's seat, wondering why he was so quiet all day. She couldn't know that he was just afraid of telling her what he actually wanted at the Warehouse before it was the right time. _

_He had thought about this so long, but this time she couldn't help him with his decisions. He had to prepare this all on his own. She couldn't tell him what she wanted. He couldn't just ask her how she wanted this moment of her life to be. And for once he was scared that maybe he could understand something wrong. That he didn't know what she wanted. _

_They got out of his Prius and walked towards the entrance of the giant building. But when they were pacing down the umbilicus, Claudia finally had enough of the silence. She took a deep breath in and stopped halfway through the white aisle. He turned around to face her, his usually calm attitude fighting against nervousness and even slight panic. He tried to keep his expression as contemplative and casual as somehow possible, silently praying that his plan would work out somehow. He needed her to follow him to their destination. And this was definitely the wrong place. _

_Claudia crossed her arms in front of her chest, annoyance written across her face. "Alright, that's it. Tell me what's wrong!" _

_He shook his head, an obviously nervous laugh escaping his lips. "Nothing's wrong, Claude. What should be wrong?"_

"_Oh, please! I don't need to be a living lie detector to see that you're not telling me the truth! You barely even looked at me all day. You didn't say more than absolutely necessary to me. It's like you're hiding something from me! I thought we agreed to leave secrets behind us after everything we've been through. Besides, it was your idea to spend this evening together. But the way it is now, I could have just as well gone to Josh in Geneva or to Claire in NYC. Maybe you would have talked to me on the phone. Probably more than right now and right here!"_

_For a moment Steve could just stand there with his mouth hanging agape, stunned by her impromptu rant. He knew it wouldn't be easy to keep this from her, but he definitely didn't expect her to break out like this. He closed his mouth, opened it, and then closed it again. He wanted to say something, but he didn't know what. _

_Claudia shook her head in disbelieve. "Okay, you know what? I don't want this to ruin my start into the new year. Let's go get your Farnsworth so we can head back to the B&B ASAP." She walked past him, pausing only for the newly installed retina scan to do its job before she entered the office. After he closed the door to the umbilicus behind them, she turned around to face him again. "I hope you at least know where you left it."_

_Steve nodded, still a little bit taken aback. He cleared his throat, tilting his head towards the endless aisles and rows. He hoped she would get the hint, so he could keep his words, and with them the risk of ruining his surprise, at a minimum. _

_Her eyes widened. "You left it down there? Oh, that's just great! This'll take hours!"_

_This time he shook his head, earning a confused glare from his impatient partner. "It's more up there than down there."_

"_What do you mean 'up there'?"_

_He almost seemed to shrink in front of her, his voice so quiet that she could barely understand what he said. "Earlier today Artie sent me to fix a light bulb. I think I left it on one of the upper shelves…"_

_At first Claudia just stared at her boyfriend in disbelieve. Gathering her thoughts, she remembered that Artie indeed gave Steve the keys for the hydraulic ramp earlier. _

_He couldn't help the smile that appeared on his face when Claudia turned around and went to the filing cabinet. The redhead pulled out one of the boxes and took the keys for the remote of the cherry picker, then making her way out onto the patio and down the stairs. Suddenly, she stopped dead in her tracks and turned to face her partner once again. The woman just barely realized that she had no idea where to go. _

"_In what section?" she asked, waiting for him to tell her in which part of the Warehouse he had left the device. Or rather above which part. She sighed, took a step aside and motioned for him to lead the way._

_He walked past her, glad that she already seemed to calm down a little again. She was still tense and obviously not amused, but she was talking to him. "It's not far from here. One of the closest aisles to the office." _

_They actually just needed about a __minute__ to reach their destination, even though it might as well have felt like an eternity to both of them. For two entirely different reasons, of course. The cherry picker was still in place, but right now back on the ground. _

_He took a step back, hoping she would understand the silent message. Luckily, she did. The redheaded genius opened the gate and stepped onto the ramp. Steve followed suit, closing the gate behind him._

"_On which shelf did you leave it?" she asked him impatiently. _

_To her surprise he gently pushed her aside and worked on the terminal himself. What she didn't know, was that he had done this about a hundred times just in this past week. He had made sure she would stand on the right side. Directly in front of the shelf. The agent pushed a couple of buttons and the ramp slowly gained height. _

_When she spotted the communication device on one of the higher shelves she already tried to reach it, while Steve stopped the hydraulic ramp. When Claudia got a closer look she stilled her movements. Next to the Farnsworth, she spotted two of her precious Mini Teslas. She assumed one of them was the one she had designed for Steve. She was a little angry and maybe even a bit hurt that he had really forgotten it there. She had spent hours over hours with designing, building, improving and engraving the minimized weapon for him. _

_She turned around, sending him a questioning glance. "Steve? Is that the Tesla I made you? And is the other one mine? I've been looking for it everywhere the past two days and you know that! I was already considering building a new one!" _

_He shrugged and simply said, "I don't know."_

_And that forced nonchalance really ticked his girlfriend off. _

"_You don't know? What do you mean, you don't know?"_

_Steve was struggling to control himself. He didn't mean to make her angry in first place, but now that he was in the middle of his plans, he had to risk something to hopefully get his happy ending after all. "I don't know. Why don't you just look for yourself?" He had to keep up his contemplative mask when he said the last sentence. If everything would work out as he had planned it, she had to turn around now. And again, luckily she did. _

_Claudia turned back towards the shelf and stood on her toes to reach out for the first gun. She was right. This one was his, with the engraved 'Jinksy' on the golden surface. She carefully placed it on the ramp and reached out for the second. She picked it up and took a closer look at it._

_Suddenly, her eyes widened and her breath got caught up in her throat. _

_She ran her thumb over the small golden disc. This wasn't there before. The redhead had only added it to his for the graving. And now, hers had a graving too. On the left side of the gun it was simply her name, 'Claude'. But on the right side of the gun there were five letters that were melting her heart. In the first line it said 'KTF' and in the second were his initials 'SJ'. "Keep the faith." she whispered quietly, all rage forgotten. She would always remember the last words she heard him say before she lost him back then. It was years ago, but she still knew every single line he said in the video. She opened her mouth to say something, but she quickly shut it again. _

_That was when she saw it. At the end of the gun barrel was something shimmering. Claudia took a deep breath in, removing the small piece of jewelry from the gun. She cautiously left it on her palm, studying it. The Caretaker-to-be slowly placed her weapon on the floor of the cherry picker. _

_The shock still written all across her frozen expression, she turned around to look at her partner. "Steve…" Before she could even think of something else to say, she noticed that he had already knelt down in front of her. He gently took the ring off her palm, smiling nervously. The redhead could see that his hands were shaking a bit, and he could see that she could barely even breathe right now. _

_This was the moment he was afraid of all along. Even though he knew that she loved him, he hoped this wouldn't all be too soon for her. Claudia wasn't exactly a marriage person after all. But now, there was no way back. All in, everything or nothing. There were so many words on the tip of his tongue, so much he wanted to tell her. But he couldn't say more out loud than the one question that was plaguing him all night. _

"_Claudia Donovan, will you marry me?"_

_It felt like both of their hearts skipped a beat. He had known that they would be here today. She had known what his question would be. And still, they both had problems to breathe at all. _

_Unable to say anything, the redhead decided to show him her answer another way. She pulled him up towards her, silently enjoying the fact that, for once, she seemed taller than him for a split second. As soon as he was standing on his feet again, she reached up to kiss him. _

_Once they broke apart, she finally found her voice again. Claudia stayed as close as somehow possible to her fiancé, leaning into the embrace. Her lips just an inch away from his ear, she whispered quietly but clearly:_

"_There's nothing I'd rather do."_


	4. Chapter 4: A New Year (Part 3)

**A/ N: KNOCK KNOCK. **

**Hey there. So, I edited and fixed a few details in the first three chapter of this story, hoping that my moody muse would finally focus again. Apparently, that wasn't the worst idea ever. I actually have another chapter written, but it wouldn't quite fit in just now. **

**This chapter pretty much consists only of the last part of this flashback. Honestly, I didn't see that coming. But alright, I'll take what my muse is willing to give. **

**Just to mention it:**

**I moved the whole story from 2024 to 2026, because I had Dana's birthday set on the 12****th**** of September 2017. **

**I changed a few details in my previous author's notes:**

**My tumblr RP blog for Dana moved from knockknockwarehouse13 to artifexadmiratio, a side blog of my savagesagacity (Camille Engelson).**

**I added Tyler Hynes' girlfriend (Instagram & YouTube: imkeekees) as Kate's face claim. **

**KTF CLM**

_31.12.2015_

_The way home after Steve's proposal was much more lively than the previous way to the Warehouse had been, and, understandably, carried a certain sense of positive nervousness. Steve was drumming a random tune on the wheel as he drove, but Claudia could swear she heard the melody of Mendelssohn's wedding march, (Which, of course, was one of the songs of which the very first recording was stored at the Warehouse.) but it could just as well be her own imagination. The redhead probably wouldn't admit it if her life depended on it, but she had caught herself picturing what it would be like to walk down the aisle once or twice already since she met Steve. Damn it, she was even looking forward to looking for a wedding dress with Myka and Claire. (They would have several discussions later, about how the older sister called it shopping. But again, Claudia stubbornly disagreed.) She couldn't wait to find her dress, pick out a hairdo, and see herself in the mirror once she was ready to get married. But most of all, she was looking forward to her fiancé's reaction to seeing her like that._

_Her fiancé._

_She loved the sound of that. It sounded like the lyrics of her new favorite song. One she hadn't even heard yet, but it was the sweetest melody already. _

_Dang it. She sounded like such a freaking girl. But honestly? Right now she couldn't really bring herself to care. She didn't see it like that. She wasn't a dreaming girl. She was a grown ass woman. A fiancé. A bride. A future wife. His future wife. She smiled softly, glancing over to the driver's seat. Claudia studied her future husband, and she couldn't believe her luck. She could never see herself as someone's wife before, but now she would marry the one man she could see as her husband. It wasn't just the wedding. It was everything that was to come. She already loved waking up next to him. She loved the way he looked right through her façade with those incredible blue eyes of his, with more adoration than she was sure she deserved. She loved drawing strength and feeling reassured by his mere presence. She loved burying her face in his shoulder, hiding from the world and forgetting all about facing terrifying nightmares or death scenarios. With Steve, she felt save. She felt respected, trusted and loved. And now, she could spend the rest of her life by his side. The redhead couldn't remember ever being so happy before. _

"_You know, usually I wouldn't mind it. But I already have trouble concentrating on driving without being watched so closely tonight. I'd like to bring my fiancé home safely."_

_His voice was teasing, mocking her. And she did roll her eyes in exaggerated annoyance, but she couldn't help it. Her focus was on another part of what he said._

"_I freaking love that word."_

_He smiled at her admission, knowing exactly what she meant. But after all the negative tension earlier that day, it was finally time to keep the mood light. Now he could relax and smile again. _

"_What? Trouble? Yeah, I know. That's basically your proverbial middle name."_

_Claudia sent him a playful glare, smirking. "It is. But I meant 'fiancé'. It rolls off my tongue so easily. I like it better when you say it, though."_

"_Wow. Look who's being all soft around the edges today. Don't worry. I won't tell the others." Steve smirked teasingly, but forced himself to keep his gaze on the road. "I like it better when you say it. Don't get used to it, though. It's only temporary. Transitionally, until I finally get to call you my wife."_

_The redhead nodded approvingly, the smile never leaving her lips. "Husband and wife doesn't sound too bad either. I think I'll get used to this. I mean, we both know I'll never be a stereotypical wife, and I don't want to, either. But I'll happily deal with being called _your_ wife." She paused, realizing just how cheesy all that probably sounded. That needed to be fixed. "You know, despite the last name."_

_Her partner chuckled, rolling his eyes. Of course, she just had to spit out a comment about that. And he wouldn't have it any other way. "Hey, everything comes at a price. It could be worse."_

"_Oh, I know." Her eyes widened, a slightly overdramatic tone in her voice. "But, yeah. It's worth it. It always is."_

_Steve smiled, falling into his memories. It was obvious that she was talking about how she brought him back with the metronome. He knew it. Despite everything she went through for him, she never regretted it. He would do anything for her, and she would do anything for him. _

_He was thrown back into the presence by his fiancé's mocking voice, accompanied by a knock on the passenger's window. _

"_Hey, Shirley. I know you're probably on the edge of your seat about delivering the good news to Team Overprotective, but you're thirty seconds away from missing the turn into our driveway."_

_His bright blue eyes widened in realization at her words, and he pretty much managed to turn the vehicle last second. Claudia's head hit the window, but she didn't complain. Instead, she chuckled in amusement at his faraway state of mind._

_It took a few seconds for Jinks to catch himself again, but once he did, he took a deep breath in and nodded. "Yeah. Well, actually, I already talked to Artie."_

_The redhead raised an eyebrow, unlocking her seatbelt. "You did?"_

"_I did. Since he's sort of my future father in law." Steve turned off the engine before he followed her example, smiling sheepishly. "I also needed his help to make sure everyone would be here for you."_

_For a moment Claudia stayed silent, the gears in her head turning. Her family hadn't celebrated completely together in ages. Of course she had her future husband to thank for the fact that they had all come this year. And when she thought about it now, it also made sense that Steve would go the old-fashioned way, past Artie. He knew how much family meant to Claudia. Plus, it surely didn't hurt her surrogate father's POV of the situation either._

_The redhead smirked, suddenly reaching out to the driver's seat. She got ahold of her fiancé's collar, pulling him towards her so she could crash her lips into his. A few seconds later she slowly pulled away, one of her arms wrapped around his neck. "You're unbelievable, you know that?"_

_The blue ocean of his eyes met the welcoming warmth of her brown ones, and in that moment neither of them even realized that the rest of the world even still existed. A bomb could go off at the other end of the street and neither of them would notice it. _

_Until their comfortable silence was disturbed by a knock on the window behind Claudia. _

_Steve raised his gaze and Claudia turned her head, to see Artie sending a glare that was obviously meant for Agent Jinks and the hand that had found its way onto the older man's surrogate daughter's hip. _

_Jinks froze for a moment, but couldn't help smirking, while his wife-to-be just looked amused at her father figure's expression. She struggled to keep any comments about his eyebrows to herself, thinking that this probably wasn't the right time for jokes. _

_She opened the door and climbed out of the car, smiling. Now she was a little nervous after all. He knew what was going on. If Steve hadn't told her, she could have seen it right there in Artie's watchful eyes. _

_Their boss had taken a step back to let her arrive in peace, before his gaze found the engagement ring she was now proudly carrying on the ring finger of her left hand. For a few seconds neither of them said anything, while Steve respectively remained waiting on his side of the car. He wanted to let them have their father-daughter moment, even though he doubted too many words would be spoken. _

_Eventually she raised her hand, and his gaze followed suit. She smiled cautiously, waiting for some sort of reaction. Artie took a deep breath in, seemingly trying to pick the right one. This clearly wasn't easy for him. _

"_Congratulations, kiddo. I… I always knew the two of you make a great team. Steve's a good guy and… you really deserve to be happy. Both of you." _

_The redhead could basically see how her surrogate father swallowed anything along the lines of 'But if you ever hurt my little girl, I will murder you in the worst way I can think of. And I can be very creative when I want to.' when he sent a nod towards Steve, who now slowly approached the front door. But Claudia was simply grateful that he congratulated them. And she could easily tell that he was sincere. She knew him well enough by now. _

_Claudia reached forward, pulling Artie into a tight hug. She knew he wasn't a fan of hugs, or would at least never admit it, but she needed this. And he returned the hug, even though, unlike her, he was a little hesitant. But in that moment, the redhead couldn't care less. And her bright grin seemed to be contagious, because even Artie couldn't help smiling along when he followed her and Steve into the house once she let go of him. _

_Claudia's hand automatically found Steve's when they reached the dining room, where the rest of the team was still gathered. Josh and Kate sat on two chairs, but they looked like they were glued together. He had wrapped one arm around her, and her head was comfortably resting on his shoulder. If you looked closely, you could see the impatience in their eyes. Josh was drumming a random tune on the table, while his girlfriend was now playing with the ring embellishing her left hand. _

_Pete sat in between Claire and Myka, with Claire sitting beside her brother. Both women were watching Pete (who had stuffed his mouth with more cookies than anyone should be able to), with a mixture of amusement and disgust written across their faces. When Myka, who was pretty much used to this sight already, had asked him why he thought it was necessary to show off that trick again, he simply excused it by saying Claire had probably never seen anything like this. The redhead had assured him that she didn't need to, but he had already been on his way to the kitchen. His partner was starting to wonder where he always found the loads of not exactly healthy food. Maybe she would ask him, once he swallowed. _

_It was Vanessa who noticed the other agents' return first, from her seat beside Myka. Artie had told her about his conversation with Steve, which obviously triggered different mental reactions in his mind. Of course, he was happy for them. But Claudia was like his very own child, more so than Scott. He was worried about her, and maybe only a little bit overprotective. It wasn't easy for him to process, that the girl he met all those years ago would get married now. But clearly, he was grateful that it was Steve. He preferred to see Claudia walking down the aisle towards her partner rather than anyone else. He knew Jinks, and he knew that he was good for her. _

_Vanessa sent Artie a smile, before her gaze settled on the younger agents. She raised an eyebrow at Steve, who quickly realized that she probably knew what was going on. He nodded firmly, earning a soft smile, while Claudia cleared her throat at his side. The five remaining pairs of eyes quickly found them, curious why the redhead was making such a big deal of their arrival instead of just sitting down with them. _

_Claudia was about to say something, but she was interrupted by a loud squeal. The source of the excited noise was quickly found, and recognized as none other than her brother's fiancé. Kate had jumped off her seat and before the redhead knew what was happening around her, she found herself trapped in a tight embrace. The brunette earned several confused looks for that move, but she didn't even seem to notice it. _

_Joshua watched the scene, unsure of what to think. Of course, Kate was a little hyper lately. And he couldn't blame her. But what the hell was this all about? _

"_Are you feeling alright, K?" _

_Kaitlyn turned around to face her future husband, rolling her eyes at him. She took Claudia's hand in hers, holding it out towards the dining table._

"_I'm a wife-to-be. I spot an engagement ring easily from halfway across the planet."_

_While Claudia's brother froze visibly as the thought sunk in, their sister was the one to break the silence only split seconds later._

"_I knew it!" Everyone turned to look at Claire, except for Joshua. He was still processing the situation. Artie, Steve, Claudia and Vanessa each raised a questioning eyebrow at the redhead. She simply shrugged sheepishly, as if she expected the end of this day to be obvious to everyone. "What? Am I seriously the only one who saw this coming?"_

_For a few seconds, silence got ahold of the room again. This time, Pete was the one to end it when he suddenly started to laugh. At first Claudia wasn't sure what to make of his reaction. Did he think this was some sort of joke? But that idea was quickly left behind when he approached the redhead and caught her in a bone crushing hug. _

_Claudia returned the hug, chuckling at his enthusiasm. She was honestly grateful that Pete was taking this so lightly, at least for now. Sooner or later, he would likely remember his role as the protective older brother in this._

_That reminded Claudia…_

_While the rest of the room was filled with laughter and congratulations, and the redhead found herself in Claire's and then Myka's arms as soon as Pete let go of her, she hadn't heard anything from her actual older brother yet. He was just sitting there, silently watching the scene with an unnervingly unreadable expression on his face. Claudia smiled at the three women currently admiring her precious new piece of jewelry, thanking them before she carefully approached the table._

_That seemed to snap Joshua out of his trance. He turned his head to look at the group, which was now gathered around a very distracted Steve, and afterwards he finally met his youngest sister's gaze. Claudia's breath got caught up in her throat as she waited for her brother's reaction. When he didn't say anything, she was getting impatient. _

"_Josh…"_

_Before she could continue, he finally decided to stand up. Claudia let out a relieved breath, and she could swear she heard how Steve did the same, when Joshua wrapped his arms around the redhead. He shifted to rest his head on top of hers, protectively holding her close to his chest. _

"_I'm glad that you have someone who makes you happy, Claude. I haven't seen you smile so much since you were a kid and driving all adults crazy by outsmarting them." The siblings shared a smirk, even though neither of them could see the other's expression in that moment. After a few seconds, Joshua left a kiss on top of her head before he pulled away with a more serious look on his face. "But I hope Steve knows that I have access to a lot of dangerous stuff where I work." _

_Claudia crossed her arms in front of her chest, a devious shimmer in her eyes. "So do we, Big Brother. You of all people should know that."_

"_Touché, Little Sister." Joshua smiled at the familiar attitude, clearly calming down. He was still processing the fact that his little sister was going to be a bride, but he had missed seeing her like this. Well, he had missed seeing her altogether. He smiled, deciding that now was as good of a time to deliver the news as any. "Who would've thought that you would get married before either of your older siblings?" _

_The redhead's expression froze for a second, before confusion crossed her face. "__Aspetta__ un __attimo__. Did I miss something there?"_

_Kate, who was listening closely for a moment to jump into the conversation, stepped over towards them, catching the whole room's attention once again. _

"_Well, I figured we could wait a few more months. Who knows how much weight I'll have gained by February? I could look like a freaking marshmallow."_

_Joshua rolled his eyes in exaggerated annoyance, even though he was clearly sincere. "I'm sure you would look amazing anyway, K. And it's only two months. But, I can wait."_

_Claudia's gaze traveled in between her brother and his fiancé, realization dawning. "You're…"_

"_Pregnant." Kaitlyn confirmed, her dark red lips forming a wide grin. "We're having a baby!"_

_This time around, Claudia was the one who squealed and wrapped her arms tightly around the other woman. But she pulled away quickly, turning to hug the father-to-be. "Congrats, guys! That's amazing!"_

_She stepped back, once again easily finding Steve's hand to take and his shoulder to lean on, to let her sister have her turn congratulating their brother. Claire had a knowing smirk on her face, seeming happy, but rather unsurprised. She kept her voice at a low volume, so only Joshua could hear her. _

"_I saw that coming, too."_

"_Guys!" Before any more hugs could be exchanged, everyone turned to look at Kate for the third time that night. She pointed at the expensive looking watch around her wrist, excitedly sinking her teeth into her lower lip. "Three more minutes to midnight."_

_Claudia looked towards the garden, her eyes widening. It was indeed dark outside, with only a few fireworks in the distance. It was already surprising that there were any at all. The redhead guessed that they went off in Featherhead, even though they seemed oddly close… _

_Pete was the first one to hurry outside, followed suit by Kate who was dragging Joshua along with her. Vanessa took Artie by the hand and led him to the garden, following Myka and Claire. The oldest agent had set two chairs closely together, for himself and Vanessa to sit on. Joshua remained on his feet, holding the future mother of his child close to his chest. Meanwhile, Pete had sat down on the table and pulled Myka and Claire down to sit beside him, the brunette to his right and the redhead to his left. That earned him an amused chuckle from Claire, while his partner merely rolled her eyes. But even she couldn't help smirking at the sheepish grin on his face. _

_Steve and Claudia stayed in the doorway, her back leaning against his chest and both of his arms wrapped around her waist. The redhead smiled peacefully, her gaze studying the sky. He bent down to leave a kiss on her shoulder, pausing to catch a glimpse of her for once so calm expression. _

_The fireworks got louder, and the group started chorusing the countdown to midnight. _

_5._

_Steve raised his gaze to look at the colorful sky, even though he kept finding himself distracted by the adoring spark in his future wife's eyes. _

_4._

_Claudia's right hand unconsciously found the ring on her left ring finger, carefully brushing over the surface of her new most treasured piece of jewelry. _

_3._

_His lips left a kiss on her jaw, close to her ear. They remained there, so she could understand him despite the loud noises from above. _

_2._

"_Any New Year's Resolutions, Girl Wonder?" _

_1._

_Over the others' vociferous cheering and the fireworks welcoming the upcoming year, he could hear her soft voice and see her content smile as she turned to look into the admiring ocean of his bright blue eyes. _

"_By the end of this year, I'll be a wife and an aunt. I don't think I need anything else for 2016."_


End file.
